Title: A Little Blonde Adventure
Author: InBetweens
Rating: T
Plot: An electrical storm of uncharitable strength breaks through the slip stream of time and space, connecting parallel universes and allowing them to spill into one another.
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from Supergirl.
Part 1 of 1
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Light refracted off the glass windows of the surrounding Sky scrapers as Cat Grant's town car pulled up to the curb if the CatCo building. Puddles formed upon all available services as the city's drainage system did its best to filter the water out of the streets and sidewalks.
Cat Grant did not rush. But today she practically ran into the safety of her building shutting out the cold chill as the door closed behind her.
Closing the umbrella in her hand she watched the water spray across the tile floor pooling itself in the midst of the lobby. She sighed, that was an accident waiting to happen. Looking at her watch she rolled her eyes, she was late. And she was going to be even later.
She waited where she stood until she was noticed by a security guard. He came slipping and sliding across the floor.
"Why haven't the mats been placed down?"
"I'm sorry for the delay. We're getting them out now, Ms. Grant." He pointed to where from around the corner the Superintendent and porter of the building were coming with wet mats. "Strange weather ain't it, Miss Grant. Not twenty minutes ago it was 80 and sunny."
"Mhmm…" Cat left the men behind to take care of the lobby. He was right. Not twenty minutes ago it had been 80 and sunny. Just as he forecast had predicted. What had not been predicted was this monstrosity of a storm that seemingly came out of nowhere.
Now it was 65 Farenheight with torrential down pours. What was worse was the thunder sounding off in the distance. It would surely be here within the hour and with that came the Lightning that had begun flashing through the dark sky. With lightning came electricity and with that…brought nightmares of the accident that had hurt Leslie and turned her into…whatever it was that she could be considered now.
Rolling her shoulders and relaxing the tense muscles Cat made a note to make sure her new assistant knew to schedule a deep tissue massage as soon as possible. She just knew she was going to need it. She had a feeling about these things.
Cat was more right than she would ever know.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Somewhere in the dessert mountains outside of National City, Alex Danvers was looking at newly generated readings from a spectrometer with wide, weary, eyes.
"Vasquez…"
"I know, Ma'am. It's not us. The readings have been the same all morning."
"Have you informed Director Lane or Henshaw?"
"Not yet, Ma'am I wanted to make sure you saw what I did before unnecessarily worrying anyone."
Alex ran her hand through her hair, "I see it. I just don't know if I want to believe it."
"Believe what?" Director Lucy Lane asked as she came to stand at the base of the dais Alex and Vasquez stood upon. The large round table before them covered in papers with figures that made little to no sense unless read together.
Vasquez handed Lucy a copy of the report she and Alex were looking at. Lucy stared at the numbers, she didn't know nearly as much as either of the women in front of her about science, but even she could see that there was something wrong with them.
"What am I looking at, exactly?"
"It's the storm. There are…infinite numbers of them."
Lucy looked up from the piece of paper to stare at Alex, waiting for her to explain further. Infinite number of storms made zero sense to her. She studied law, not science. Although she'd been getting better with a great many things when it came to her new position, there was still a lot she had to learn and other things she never would. When Alex seemed engrossed in the report again Lucy cleared her throat, gaining the scientists attention once again.
"What exactly does that mean?"
"This storm, it's not just here, ma'am. It's…well it's everywhere."
"Like, across the entire country?" Lucy vocalized the question but realized how stupid it sounded only seconds after speaking. She'd seen the weather reports. The storm was only localized to National City and the surrounding areas. She hated asking stupid questions, especially when she was talking to two scientists.
"No, it's like…" Alex stopped talking mid-sentence and grabbed a pen from Vasquez's chest pocket, Lucy pretended not to notice Vasquez's flush, and instead walked up the two steps to stand beside Alex as she drew on the paper.
"This storm is here…but it's also in this same location, in National City, throughout every dimension that exists. Infinite. It's crossing through the space time continuum…it's breeching the same thread that Barry did when he visited." Which Alex was still upset that she had missed. She would have loved to have had the time to sit down and talk to Barry about his ideas regarding the infinite number of Earths moving through space/time.
Alex looked at Lucy and the smile upon her face was one of sheer excitement. She looked like a kid who just realized that Santa actually existed and he'd gotten everything on her list.
Lucy on the other hand just felt a headache coming on.
Pinching the bridge of her nose she closed her eyes for a moment, something she'd picked up from Hank. "How exactly is it in…every universe?"
Vasquez interrupted then, "We don't know, ma'am. That's what we're trying to figure out."
"Once we figure it out we have a better chance at closing it. That should be our top priority." Hank said as he made his way over to the group of women from the shadows. Lucy glared at him, they'd spoken about him sneaking up on them like that. He ignored her pointed look and instead took the copy of the report from Vasquez and flipped through it. "Get everyone we have on this. Find where the breeches are going to occur. We need to close them as soon as possible."
"Yes, Sir." Alex and Vasquez both left the dais, Vasquez went to alert the sci-tech team and Alex went into her lab to get to work.
Lucy waited until she was standing with Hank, alone. "Why do I have a feeling today is going to be a really stressful day?"
Hank tilted his head down and met Lucy's eyes with a smirk, "Because, Director, I can almost guarantee someone is going to find those holes and when they do…we're going to have to find a way to get them back through it before we close the rift."
Yep, nightmare day 101.
"And if we don't?"
Hank frowned, he hated leaving anyone behind. "Let's cross that bridge if we come to it." Hank walked away to help the sci-tech team.
Looking up at the ceiling Lucy wondered why she just hadn't kept her job at CatCo. Things were seemingly so much simpler there.
Steeling herself Lucy walked towards the monitoring station. Ready and rearing to go. They had people to save. A clear mission. Close the rifts. Get anyone that came through back to where they came from, close the rifts. This she could do. This she was good at. She already had a game plan in mind and set about finishing it.
"Alright, Roger, Travis, get the teams ready. The Sci-Tech team is going to need readings. We're going to have to get a little wet."
"Aye, Aye, Direct Lane."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Thunder growled its way through the sky and down to the ground as the rain pelted down against the soil in constant droves. The flash of lightning illuminated the otherwise dark night. Large puddles were forming on the sidewalk and in the mud.
The storm had been going on for the last few hours and had driven the three kids into the cabin they were staying in with their parents. It was supposed to be a summer trip before school started. It had been fun, until the storm rolled in and forced them inside and out of the lake and away from fishing and camping.
A little girl, no more than four years old, with deep blonde hair stood in front of her big sister trying to jump up and grab back her stuffed animal. The older sister kept the toy just out of reach, a wicked smile on her face as she did, she had to be about ten or eleven. There was an older boy, two or three years older than the thirteen-year-old. He watched the two girls with a disparaging frown. He shook his head as they began to scream at each other. In his corner, he stuck his headphones into his ears and turned up the music to drown out their yelling. No way was he getting involved in this fight.
"Melanie, give him back!"
"Make me…"
"It's mine!"
"Not anymore, now it's mine."
"Melanie…!" Sarah whined, "Give Mister Frog back! He's scared of the rain."
The two girls circled around each other, Sarah trying to jump up and grab the frog from Melanie's hand but no matter how high she jumped she kept missing. The speed in which they were rushing around was growing in intensity.
Melanie teased and taunted Sarah as she played keep away. When Sarah got a little too close she stuck her empty hand out and pushed it against her sister's forehead. "Maybe you'll think twice about going through my stuff if Mr. Frog finds out just what his insides look like."
Sarah was horrified and Melanie realized her mistake when Sarah screeched, "MOOOOMMMMMMMM!"
The older boy cringed as he covered his ears and blinked, tears welling in his eyes at the screech that pierced right through him. He yanked the earbuds from his ears and stared accusingly at Melanie.
"Melanie, what are you doing?"
"Stay out of this Carter."
"Just give her the toy back!"
From two opposite sides of the house the screech reached the ears of the adults in the house that were slowly approaching their location.
"Sarah, what have I said about screeching like that?"
"Girls…"
Carter rolled his eyes, "Now you're going to have to give it back anyway. Just give it to her so you won't get in too much trouble."
"No! She's always taking my stuff and hiding it and burning it and it's not fair! She gets away with everything!" Melanie protested as she stared at Carter.
Sarah continued to jump up to try and get her toy back, but she was several inches shorter than Melanie and when her sister held up the toy she couldn't reach it.
"Girls, what's going on in here." Came from just down the hallway, two doors away. The footsteps getting closer and closer.
Melanie looked around and saw the rain falling out the window, she smiled.
"If you want Mr. Frog you're gonna have to go get him." Melanie was by the window in a flash and she wond her arm back and threw the toy as hard as she could out the window towards the stars.
"NOoooo!" Sarah screamed and raced towards the window and within a second she was jumping out the window and flying after Mr. Frog.
"Great!" Carter shoved Melanie away from the window. Hard enough that the girl thumped roughly against the opposite wall, the structure of the house shaking at the impact. He knew she would be fine and didn't spare her another look. He raced to the window and launched himself out the window to fly after Sarah. He called out after her, "Sarah! Come back!"
It was raining and the storm was only getting worse the faster and farther up Carter and Sarah flew. Behind him Carter could hear his mother calling after them. Carter didn't wait for her to reach them though, if he waited Sarah would disappear in the time it took her to reach him. He'd get Sarah and bring her back. He just needed to get above these clouds.
"Sarah!" Carter yelled as he watched Sarah disappear into a thick ominous cloud that was sparking with electricity about to be expelled. He flew higher and faster pushing himself to get past the cloud before it expelled the electricity.
With his hand stretched out his eyes widened in fear as the bolt of lightning he'd been watching form, took shape and shot out from the cloud and hit his fist dead center. He screamed at the pain the last thing he heard was the echo of Sarah screaming in agony before everything went white.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"Sir, we have a problem." Lucy ran into the lab that Hank and Alex were huddled in with the sci-tech team.
"What is it?" Hank stood up immediately, seeing the stress lines forming around Lucy's eyes.
"An anomaly, sir, one that's been open for a while."
"How long?" Alex looked up from her reports.
"Two…maybe three hours."
"Where?" Hank asked, already pulling out his radio to call teams together to get to the location.
"Two hours outside of National City, in the mountain ranges up by Lake Sokoa."
Vasquez jogged into the room, two reports grasped. "We've got two more…" Vasquez reported, "Three unknown entities came through the anomalies, ma'ams, sir."
"Get teams out there now. Call the FBI and local police. We'll need to close off those areas. Put them all on alert. This is just the beginning people."
"We need to get them back through those holes immediately."
Lucy and Hank spoke to their teams at the same time, everyone breaking away to take care of their jobs.
"Sir, should I call in Supergirl?" Alex asked, even as she had her cellphone out and finger pressing the send button.
Hank nodded once, "Tell her to be careful. We don't need her flying into one of these holes."
"Uhh…Sir?"
"What!" Hank spun around, the tension of the situation showing around the edges of his eyes and in his voice.
"It appears like the individuals that came from the anomaly sir…" Hank glared at the tech until he spoke faster. "It appears like they are alien or meta human in nature sir. They uhm…disappeared. Fast. They're really fast."
"All of them?"
The tech nodded, sweating as he stepped away from Hank, "All of them."
Hank snapped his head to Alex, "Get Supergirl on the phone and get her up to speed and to stay in the city. Something tells me that's where she'll be needed most." Hank walked alongside Alex and Lucy before addressing their teams that formed in boxed formation in front of them. "The situation is this people: we have a storm that is generating enough electricity to open rifts between alternate dimensions. There have been three meta humans or aliens that have already come through. We are to apprehend these individuals. There is no saying if they are friendly or hostile a, so keep yourself alert and ready for anything. We don't know what these aliens or meta humans are going to do when they realize they're not in their world. We need to find them, now."
Lucy was already giving orders for four teams of six. Once everyone had their assignment they were moving out. There was no time to waste.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Kara Danvers sat at her desk in her new office attempting to get through the piles of paperwork she had somehow accumulated in the last week. She'd been in her new position for a little over three months now, but everything was still very new. It was only last month that she didn't have to juggle two jobs at the same time, finally having found a suitable assistant.
Two months of searching and she had started to suspect that Cat had been having second thoughts. Anyone she found was just…never good enough. They could be in the position for a day, three days, a week. The shortest had been an hour, and really he'd been asking for it when he'd grabbed Kara's ass in front of Cat. Not that because it was her ass that made Cat fire him, no, it could have been anyone and 'their ass' and Cat would have done the same thing. He was a walking HR nightmare anyway.
Kara sighed and leaned back into her chair. This day was turning out to be a long one, and it wasn't even ten am yet.
The weather outside was only getting worse. Kara could hear the approaching thunder, her skin already on edge with the electricity in the air. It was getting stronger and stronger the longer the storm raged outside. Even inside she was feeling a little fried.
Without windows in her office the air circulation wasn't the greatest. She'd already put in a request for…something. She didn't really remember what the maintenance team had called it, but whatever it was would help vent some of the air in here better than the singular vent over in the left corner.
Cracking her neck, shoulders, and then her knuckles, Kara leaned forward to get back to work. With a red pen in hand she began skimming over the report in front of her when…
"KARA!"
Kara jumped so high her head hit the ceiling. Before she fell back down and broke her desk, she stopped herself, floating mid-air for a second before she burst herself forward, making sure to put herself down on her feet as she ran out of her office towards the cry of her name.
It was Cat.
Kara's heart leapt up into her throat.
Cat...
She skidded to a stop outside the open doors to her boss' office, afraid that Livewire was back and she was attacking and there was ass to kick and…and there was no threat.
There was no one in the office. No. Yes there was. But it wasn't a threat that Kara could determine.
Cat was staring into her office and didn't even seem to notice Kara had arrived. She stood behind one of her couches and stared at something across the room, behind her desk. Her grip on the couch was tight, like it was the only thing keeping her standing.
"What's going on?" Kara circled the doorway slowly, staying out of sight of whatever, whoever was in the office, and asked Natalie, the new assistant, why she'd been bellowed for.
"I'm calling security."
Kara's eyes shot to the young woman, "But why!?" She hissed.
Natalie looked at her like she had three heads for not knowing what was going on. She merely pointed into Cat's office.
Kara sighed, wondering if it was another bird.
A few weeks ago when Cat had left the balcony doors open a bird had flown into the office and Cat had screeched like a… (lack of better word) banshee… and escaped the room. Cat had ranted and cursed the whole hour it took Kara and Winn to catch the damn thing. If she'd been able to use her powers it would have only taken a second, but Cat insisted on being present as it was captured, raving about avian flu and needing to sterilize her whole office.
Kara really, really, hoped it wasn't another bird.
Kara stared at Cat for a long moment before she looked to the right and saw a small girl, no more than four years old, holding onto a stuffed frog, with tears in her eyes, and a quivering chin.
Oh god…it was worse than a bird. Kara thought as she felt her heart melt at the precious little face.
The girl looked as if she'd just lost her puppy. A puppy that shouldn't be in Cat Grant's office to begin with.
Kara blinked, looking at Cat for some type of explanation. Why was there a child in Cat's office? Why was Cat seemingly terrified of said child?
Cat's eyes were wide and she looked at Kara as if she were about to faint.
Cat pleaded with her eyes for Kara to do something.
Cat needed Kara to fix this; to make this better. It was the same look Cat gave Supergirl last month when Carter had been kidnapped and Cat was beside herself with worry and fear.
Although this situation was much different, and Carter was home safe, Kara needed to do something. She needed to figure out the situation and fix it because Kara couldn't stand to see Cat look so helpless.
"Okay, okay, uhm…" Kara took several steps into the office, coming into the little girl's sight. "Miss Grant?"
Cat didn't say anything but she looked at Kara again and the further Kara moved into the office the more she noticed how pale Cat seemed to be.
The sniffling grew louder and suddenly there was a cry and a sobbed gasp. Then before Kara could turn around something hit her, hard. Harder than any human could. The impact actually caused her to skid across the floor, even with her feet planted and weight distributed. The child had come across the room far faster than was normal for a human child.
Kara's eyes widened: Meta human? Alien maybe? Was that why Cat was so weary of the seemingly harmless child? Had the little girl already showed Cat just how inhuman she was? Though, that wouldn't put Cat on edge this much. After all Cat had dealt with her fair share of meta humans and aliens.
Kara felt a flush skin across her body at the memory of last month after Supergirl had saved Carter and Cat had spent enough time staring at him to ensure he was safe and sound asleep in his own bed. There had been wine and talking and tears and gratefulness that had become earnest desperation as clothes Cat sought out some kind of physical contact. Kara figured it could have been anyone. But it wasn't just anyone. It was Supergirl-her alter ego-that had spent some time that night indulging in Cat's touch and touching Cat. She spent the night but had stopped things before they passed the point of no return. Cat had rebelled against her chivalry but Kara had stood firm even as Cat slammed her fists against her chest. Cat yelled and screamed and she ended up crying against her shoulder until she passed out from exhaustion. Kara carried her to bed and before she could just deposit the vulnerably frail woman to the bed, Cat hooked her hand in her hair and pulled her down to lay beside her. So Kara had stayed-wide awake as Cat slept away the alcohol, fear, and adrenaline.
When Cat woke up and saw Supergirl-only dozing a bit with her eyes softly closed-she'd gasped and run. Run right into the bathroom to clean herself up. Kara had felt her heart break in that moment-aware that Cat's affection had been caused by the situation and the alcohol, not because she truly wanted her-or Supergirl-or both. So, while Cat hid in the bathroom Kara slipped quickly from the house, ashamed that she was the one making the walk-or flight of shame.
That had been four weeks ago. Kara had been forced to come into work every day and see Cat for hours on end, hear her voice and watch her talk while knowing what her lips felt like, what they tasted like. It was becoming incredibly difficult to focus, but somehow she managed (mostly because she'd begun locking herself away in her office).
And now, here she was. Standing in Cat's office because she came running at the slightest hint of trouble (to save the day) only to find a young meta human girl as the 'hostile' she needed to defeat for Cat.
Cat wouldn't be afraid of this girl if she were a meta human or an alien-not if that was the only thing about the girl. It had to be something else because Cat certainly had no prejudices against aliens.
Kara's thoughts were brought back to the girl in her arms. She groaned and gasped, arms reaching out to hold the sobbing blonde child against her side.
The girl clung to her tightly, her face buried into her stomach and arms ensnared around her like she was terrified that Kara would run away if she didn't hold on.
Kara stared at Cat in shocked terror as the little girl started crying hysterically against her. Kara loved kids, but she didn't often interact with kids. She thought they were cute and precious, but the only children she interacted with were those in danger—or Carter Grant-who found himself in danger more often than either she or Cat would like. That, by no means, made Kara an expert with kids.
"Mommy…"
"Who…who is your mommy?" Cat asked from behind the couch, where she looked like she'd fallen a few inches and was trying to pick herself back up.
The little girl looked at Cat and then up at Kara.
Kara's eyes widened as she stared into soft aqua blue eyes that matched her own, the jaw line and facial structure was so similar to her own, (to her mother's and Aunt Astra's) that it was almost like she was looking at herself; twenty or so years younger.
"Mamma doesn't…member me."
"Mamma?" Kara chocked out as she watched the girl nod her head, pressing it against Kara's stomach to hide again, her small index finger pointed at Cat.
Cat…was this girl's mamma? She, this girl thought that she, Kara Zor-El Danvers was her mommy, and Cat Caitlin Grant was her mamma.
That was…
Impossible.
How could that be?
Why on earth did she then think Kara was her mommy? Kara had no children. She would know if she had any biological children or if she adopted children! That seemed like the kind of thing a person would remember.
That was just…
This was a prank.
A joke.
She and Cat were being punked. That's what this was.
Because…
Because there was no way this girl was her daughter.
She didn't have any kids! Let alone a kid with Cat Grant!
There was…
There was…
The little girl looked up at Kara with her big blue eyes and she pouted at Kara, her chin quivering again. She looked at Kara like Kara was her hero, that Kara had all the answers to life's questions and would make things right. And it struck Kara full force because that look, that same stare…she saw it almost every day, except usually it came from the older woman clutching onto that couch like it were a life line. Hell, Cat was looking at her like that right now.
Kara realized the reason Cat held onto that couch so tightly wasn't because she was scared of this little girl, it was because she believed this little girl.
Kara felt faint.
The color in her face must have drained because even Cat looked concerned for her.
"Kara!"
"Whoa…whoa…" Winn and James both arrived and scooped up Kara as she took a backwards swan dive to the ground. The two men struggled to hold her up, but they managed.
"Mommy!" The little girl cried as she took two large steps backwards. "Uncle Winn, Uncle James, you have to help her!"
Both men stared blankly at the little girl in front of them. She looked terrified. Her grip on her stuffed frog had caused her knuckles to go white. Her eyes were red rimmed from her crying and her face was blotchy and red and yet, even they could see the striking resemblance to photos of Kara as a young girl, photos they'd seen around her apartment many times.
"Kara?" Cat raced around the couch towards her former assistant at the sight of her over dramatic performance. Was the possibility of this child being…theirs…so terrible?
Granted, Cat herself had already had her chance to internally digest this information. This girl was obviously not from here. Here-being their dimension-or what have you. The girl already made that very clear when she came bursting into Cat's office on a whirl wind—literally—she'd run in at super speed, with nothing but wind lagging behind and in front of her.
Cat had eeped, she couldn't help it. It was a rather shocking experience to realize that there was suddenly a young girl in front of her when moments ago there had been no one. She'd also had her fair share of meta humans/aliens coming to her office unexpectedly. It never ended well, save for when Supergirl visited. Though these days that happened far less frequently than Cat would like.
The last time she had been alone with Supergirl had been the morning after Supergirl had returned Carter to her safe and sound. As was almost expected Cat had indulged in a little too much brandy as she awaited word from the authorities—from Supergirl—of Carter's well being. She had been vulnerable and desperate for something good, for an outcome where she didn't lose the most precious thing in her life. She was ashamed to admit that she had thrown herself at Supergirl-at Kara-without so much as a request if she was someone the young woman could want.
When Cat had woken up after attacking the young (alien) woman both sexually and physically, she'd run to the bathroom to empty her stomach. She'd been attempting to pull herself together, to form some kind of apology or speech or even to dismiss Kara with a haughty attitude-only to come back to an empty bedroom. Since then Supergirl hadn't visited, not on her balcony here at CatCo or her home. Then there was Kara. Well, Kara could barely look at her.
It was awful but Cat did not know how to make the situation better. They had both made their decisions and now they were living with them, even if they both seemed miserable.
But this wasn't about Kara/Supergirl.
This was about the little girl claiming to be their daughter and how she'd appeared out of nowhere ten minutes ago.
Natalie, having been a victim of the gust of wind that the girl created, had come running into the office in time to hear and see the young girl, whose name she still did not know, throw herself at Cat as she happily rambled on about her adventure.
"Mamma! I'm so sorry Mamma. I didn't mean to disappear. I didn't. It was an accident. I just, I had to get Mr. Frog back. Melanie…" The name was said with disdain, almost an identical tone in which Cat said Lois Lane's name, "Threw him out the window! The window mamma and I had to get him. I'm sorry. I got losted when I founds him. I, I knew to come here though. You always said to come here if I got losted. So I did. I'm here. And…things are so different, Mamma. Why are things so different? Where are your pictures of us? Where is mommy and Carter?"
Cat hadn't known what to do. This little girl was acting like she was her mother, like she had lost her way somewhere and had finally found her way home. Cat had no idea who Sarah was, but the name Carter obviously rung a bell with her. This little girl was looking for pictures that didn't exist, pictures that obviously had her son and the girl in them, maybe even Sarah as well. What caused the skin on Cat's arms to crawl with goosebumps was that the girl knew who Carter was and how she had Carter's nose—the Grant nose—the one her mother had given to her and who'd inherited that from her father and his mother before him.
With that realization, Cat could freely admit—now—she didn't react well to the situation.
There was a certain to beauty to hindsight, wasn't there?
Cat had jumped up from her seat, dislodging the young girl and backed away from her quickly. Trying to put as much space between them as possible. She just needed a few minutes to clear her head and figure out what was going on. But jerking away and putting that space between her and the young girl had been the wrong decision.
"Security..." Cat had said, Natalie nodded and ran to her desk and phone.
"Mamma…?" The girl had gotten upset. Very upset and did so very quickly.
Big fat tears had formed in her eyes the size of which Cat hadn't seen since Carter was an infant and his eyes seemed bigger than his head. The tears forming in crystalline eyes of this little girl held the same power Carter's tears did. They made her stomach flop around like a fish on the deck of a boat, her very being itchy with the need to make the tears stop, to calm them, to soothe away the worries or fears or pain that had caused them.
Yet, Cat didn't know what to do. She didn't understand who this girl was or why she thought that Cat was her mamma. She didn't understand how she had powers or how she even existed.
The only thing Cat did know was that she needed Kara. Now.
So, without much thought she sucked in a deep breath and she screamed for her former assistant, knowing Kara would be able to hear her, even though she was halfway across the floor and in her own office, door most certainly closed.
Kara would hear her because Kara wasn't human and Kara knew how to handle things that weren't ordinary, because Kara was extraordinary, like the extraterrestrial type of extraordinary. And that was exactly what this situation called for. Or so Cat hoped.
Cat had been wrong of course, because the moment the young girl started crying on Kara's stomach and calling her mommy, Cat knew she'd made the wrong choice. It was the only logical choice at the time but now, now it seemed like the silliest one she'd ever made. Especially since the Girl of Steel had literally fainted at the idea of having a four-year-old child—who looked strikingly like the both of them if anyone was going to admit it—appear out of the blue.
"Couch…get Kara to the couch." Cat instructed, Winn and James struggling to do as Cat was asking.
"Uh…yeah, sure." They were trying to make it seem like Kara weighed nothing, but their inability to actually lift her alone was telling enough.
"Must be all those krelers she eats..." Winn tried to use as the excuse.
The little girl, whose name they did not know, put her stuffed Frog under her arm and stepped up to the two men and her mommy. She glared at them for calling her mommy 'fat' without saying the word. She knew what they weren't saying. She was four, half Kryptonian, and on alert. She easily picked up most of Kara's weight around her hips, allowing Winn to run around to get her legs and James to hold Kara under her arms.
"Okay...okay...gently." Cat moved the pillows around on the couch so they could lie Kara's head down on two of them. "Now..." Cat was about to give Winn and James a quick recap of what she knew when they were interrupted.
"Ms. Grant? Your Assistant called. You have an unaccompanied minor?" George, the head of security, asked as he stood in the doorway with a female officer behind him.
Cat looked to the young girl and stood beside Winn. She kicked his shoe to get his attention. "No. I'm sorry George. It seems she's here with her Uncle Winn."
Suddenly, Winn seemed to understand why Cat was kicking his loafers. "Yeah...yes. She's my...niece." He nodded smiling at Cat to show he'd caught on. When Cat glared at him he swallowed and looked back at George, sans smile.
"As I said. Sorry for the interruption to your day, George."
"If you're sure Ms. Grant?" George didn't look all that convinced.
"Yes, very. Thank you." Cat wore her most charming smile to try and disarm George's deductive abilities.
"And Kara, ma'am?" All three adults looked at Kara as she rested on the couch, still dead to the world.
"She fainted." The little girl stated from where she'd been hidden behind Winn and Cat. "She'll be okay." She reassured, her gap tooth smile seeming to set the guards at ease.
George still looked at Cat before he made any kind of move to leave, "Lack of airflow in that office of hers. It got very hot with the heat on. Tell Henry to make that construction for the new vent priority. I don't want to give Kara reason to sue."
"She wouldn't do that. Not Kara." George laughed, but still seemed concerned, "I'll make sure Henry's on it first thing."
George and his employee slipped away, leaving Cat alone with the three stooges and a very powerful little girl.
"Close the door." Cat instructed at James who went to close the door, keeping Natalie out of the room. Natalie glared at James who shrugged at her from within the office before turning his back on her.
They had a lot to talk about and Natalie was good at her job but Cat wouldn't trust her with Kara's secret, ever. A secret she wasn't even supposed to be aware of herself.
Cat turned to look at the crumpled young woman laying restlessly upon her couch. Her eyes immediately softened as she allowed her eyes to trail over every slope of Kara's face. Her hand, on its own accord, reached out and brushed a few wayward strands of errant hair away from her face. Soon, there were no hairs to put in their place and her fingers were still softly sliding over Kara's jaw line.
When Cat realized what she was doing she slowly brought her hand to her waist. Her eyes flickering around her to see if either James or Winn had noticed her slip in composure.
They seemed oblivious as they stood together whispering about what their next move would be, probably stressing over hot to help keep Kara's secret while she could not.
Cat rolled her eyes. She wondered how long she would have to pretend that she didn't know Kara's secret. How long was she going to pretend that she didn't care for the young woman in front of her? How long was Kara going to keep her at arm's length because of her mistake?
Cat looked down at her left side, the little girl was pulling on her suit jacket as she stared up into her eyes. Cat gasped, realizing she had been caught, but not by her two employees.
"You're not my mamma and mommy are you?"
Cat shook her head no, slowly. Both James and Winn stopped their hushed whispering at the sound of the girl's voice.
"I'm scared."
Cat kneeled down in front of the little girl, who was nervously picking at the fuzz on her toy's chest as she pushed it forcefully against her lower face, obscuring her chin, mouth and nose. Cat could still see her eyes and the tears falling from them even as she squeezed them shut.
"We'll get you home to them." There was a real pain emanating from her chest as she watched watery eyes peer up at her with trust. This little girl trusted her to keep her word, and she was going to make sure she did.
"You promise?"
Cat hesitated. She didn't want to give her word if she couldn't deliver. "I promise we'll do everything we can. Okay?"
The little girl nodded slowly.
"What's your name, sweetheart?" Cat brushed long wavy blonde locks behind a small ear as she posed her question.
"Sarah..." Sarah whispered as she sniffled and snuggled her cheek into her stuffed animal. "My name is Sarah Alexandra Grant-Danvers." Cat felt like she was going to swoon and join Kara upon the couch at the mouthful of a name. A name she could not help but feel...intrigued with. Cat had always wanted to name a daughter-if she were to have one-Sarah.
"Grant-Danvers?" Winn asked, his usually expressive face wide with shock, or was it horror? James at least controlled his outward expression, as if he seemed to understand how this young girl was both Kara's and Cat's daughter. "Your father is Adam...see that makes-"
"Adam? Eww-aah! He's not my daddy, he's my brother! That's gross!" The girl made a gagging noise as she over exaggerated her retching movements.
James smiled softly, slapping Winn in the chest, stopping him from saying anything else. "Yeah, Uncle Winn. Eww-ahh..."
Sarah smiled at James' animated exaggeration, a softness in his eyes that Sarah appreciated. Cat was never more grateful to have hired the young man.
"Sarah, why don't you and I go into my office to talk? I have a friend I can call that can help us figure out what's going on." James extended his hand, palm out, fingers open, to take Sarah's hand and lead her away.
Cat immediately pounced on the idea and killed it, viscously. Cat stepped the half step closer to Sarah and the girl slid slowly towards her as well. Cat placed a gentle but possessive hand upon the girl's shoulder, her expression hardening as she looked at James. She understood where he was coming from. He was just trying to protect Kara's secret while Kara couldn't. But everyone in the room knew that Supergirl wasn't going to come flying through that balcony to save Sarah. It was about time that Kara's Super amigos knew she had figured out her 'secret' a long time ago.
"Uhh...my head. What happened?" Kara's voice echoed from just behind Cat. She hadn't realized how possessive she'd become until she realized she was standing in front of Kara with Sarah tucked just behind her left side.
"You're awake! Thank god!" Winn seemed to sag in relief even as he stood several feet away from the couch. His attempt at an approach to the couch and Kara was stopped by James' hand on his arm. James who was so very smart to realize Cat was in some kind of over protective mode and might tear the poor boy apart for his overstep. Whether he meant it as a threat or not.
The photographer nodded to her, just the tiniest amount, and his eyes were understanding. It was as if he'd gone through something like this before and understood just how fast and strong the desire to protect the girl at her side-and her other mother-hit her.
"Mah-uh. You're awake!" Sarah fumbled with the word mom and looked devastatingly adorable and sorrowful that the woman on the couch-who looked like her mother-wasn't actually her mother.
"Mmm...my phone." Kara groaned as she pressed the bottom of her palm to the center of her forehead, her eyes scrunched up and crinkles formed around her eyes as she winced.
Cat looked around the immediate area for Kara's phone but found nothing. "What about your phone?"
"Buzzing. Alex." Her speech was stilted and she groaned after speaking, her free hand going towards her ear to press against it as if she had an ache there as well.
"Oh!" Winn realized that Kara must have left her phone in her office. This wasn't the first time she'd said aloud her phone was ringing when she wasn't even in the same room-or building. "I'll go...find it." He quickly volunteered.
Winn ran out of the office so fast he forgot to close the door. Natalie, who'd been waiting for the door to open like a vulture circling a dying woodland creature, rushed forward and tried to slip inside. James was faster and put himself in front of Natalie, stepping left and right to block her entrance. Even going so far as to advance on her personal space to force her to back up so he could close the door on her again.
"Miss Grant..."
"Handle my calls. Cancel the rest of today. Reschedule for...next week." Cat told the girl without even looking at her or watching the box step she and James were performing like pros at her doorway.
"But Miss..."
"I did not hire you to give me excuses. I am unavailable for the rest of the week. Go. And do not come back until everything has been settled."
"I...yes, Miss Grant." Natalie's shoulders fell a bit her eyes downcast as she went to her desk and got to work.
James closed the doors once again and stood in front of them, his back only two inches from pressing against the cool surface.
Cat kneeled in front of the couch so she could be eye level with Kara, if the girl could open her eyes. Kara was currently squeezing them closed as tight as possible.
Sarah kneeled too, but she took up the opposite end of the couch, staying within sight but almost out of sight all together, her small hand hovering over Kara's ankle, like she wanted to touch her but couldn't.
Cat, surprisingly, could relate to Sarah's dilemma. Cat was left just inside Kara's circle but so close to the edge that she might as well have been outside it. She wasn't in the inner circle. No. That area was reserved for Olsen and Toyman Jr. and anyone else that had been told and trusted with Kara's secrets.
Cat was close to Kara. They had a relationship, they fiddled with just how close or far apart they were from each other often, but these days Cat felt so far away that even if she tried to reach out to Kara she was sure that she'd touch only air. Metaphorically speaking of course.
Now, however, physically, she was close to Kara, very close. Close enough that when she reached out her hand it landed upon the young woman's shoulder easily.
"Kara...darling. What's the last thing you remember?"
"Glasses..." Kara requested through gritted teeth. "Please, Cat."
"Oh, of course." Cat went to grab the glasses-which James had removed after settling Kara upon the couch-but before she could even twist all the way around Sarah had the glasses in hand and was now kneeling a little closer to Cat.
Sarah must have used her super speed to grab them because Cat was dizzy and felt her stomach roll a little at the blur or color and the slight gust of wind that had suddenly blown her hair back. She checked her balcony doors-again-and confirmed that they were still closed.
"Here..." Sarah whispered softly, shyly. Her eyes peered at something on the floor and only shifted up to look at Cat when she took the glasses, but once Sarah was sure Cat had them, her eyes went right back to the floor. Or was it the thread sticking out of the couch cushion that her fingers began to play with? Either way...
"Thank you, Sarah."
Sarah nodded her head, the movements slow, and unsure. The wavy curls of Sarah's hair fell in front of her face and Cat felt her heart melt to liquid butter as Sarah used the knuckle of her index finger to push it back, a habit Cat recognized as her own. She too wore glasses as a child and she pushed strands of unruly hair behind her ears and away from her face with her knuckles just to make her mother stop reprimanding her for touching her face with her dirty hands. Cat wondered if the hair twirling was something Sarah inherited from Kara's alter ego.
The grip on Sarah's stuffed animal tightened in response to Cat's continued stare.
Sarah felt tears in her eyes. Her momma never really called her Sarah. Not unless she was in trouble, or wasn't in the room and was being summoned. Her momma usually called her sweetheart, sweetie, or little one. It hurt...so much...to know this woman looked just like her mother, sounded like her, smelled like her, but it wasn't her.
Where was she?
What was she going to do?
How was she going to get home?
"Loud..." Kara moaned as she brought her glasses to her ears. The stress lines along her forehead decreased until Kara could open her eyes. The sounds of the city diluted by the lead in her glasses.
"The lead helps." Sarah whispered as she tugged on her own glasses, using that opportunity to wipe her eyes of the tears slowly falling from them.
"Oh..." Kara's eyes widened at the soft sound of a young girl's voice. Cat had called her something. What had Cat's voice said in the din of noises that had bombarded her while her mental shields were down.
Sa...Sar...Sarah! That was it!
Kara fell back into the couch, her head spinning as she rushed to sit up. "That was real..."
"Yes, Sarah is real. She must be from...an earth like that of your friend Barry Allen. One that is not...here...an alternate dimension." Cat nervously waved her hand in a circle to try and encompass all possibilities.
"Oh..." Kara repeated, softly, her eyes looking at the tears on Sarah's cheeks with a distinct pain in her chest. "Hey now...come here." Kara forced her body to cooperate as she sat up and leaned down enough to pull Sarah into her arms. Something she made look easy when it shouldn't have been. But at the moment Kara was less worried about her secret being out. Cat already knew. She had to. If she didn't know after everything...then Kara was going to be mad, very mad.
The second Kara had Sarah in her arms the girl started to sob, her whole body shaking with the force of her cries.
"I wanna go ha-home..." Sarah hiccupped through her tears. Sarah's hand gripped Kara's shoulder right enough for Kara to wince at the strength. Kara massaged the back of Sarah's scalp with her fingers as the other held Sarah against her tightly. She whispered soft nonsensical noises and swayed left to right. When Kara opened her eyes she saw Cat staring at her, a beautiful softness in her expression.
Cat's hand rested gently on Sarah's shoulder Her eyes finding Kara's for a long moment. What was there that they didn't say with their eyes these days? It was the only way they seemed to communicate since Carter's kidnapping.
Cat wished she could make things right with Kara, but the courage had eluded her. How could she ask for forgiveness for her actions when she wasn't sorry for them? Perhaps sorry for the timing of them, and the consequences, but she wasn't sorry for having done the acts.
Kara blinked first, looking away from the intensity within Cat's eyes, instead she focused her attention on the young girl in her arms. Kara pushed her cheek up against Sarah's forehead and closed her eyes. She recalled laying in her mother's arms like this when she was sad, or snuggled up in her Aunt Astra's arms as she read to her about what would be considered Kryptonian fables.
"We'll find a way to get you home, honey. We'll just need your help okay?" Kara leaned back and brushed soft blonde strands of hair away from Sarah's face. Sarah stuck her chin into the side of Kara's shoulder and stared into eyes that were identical to her momma's.
"How can I help?" Sarah wiped at her eyes with a curled fist, rubbing at her irritated eyes, pushing her glasses up onto the top of her head as she did so.
"There are lots of ways you can help. You'll have to tell us about your parents, your moms, and the world you live in with them. What year it is. Where you live…" Kara listed things off the top of her head that she figured would help them.
"I got it! I got it!" Winn rushed into Cat's office, slamming the door closed behind him as he waved Kara's phone around like the prize he seemed to think it was. "Hang on…here's Kara." Winn spoke into the phone before moving towards the couch. He stopped, suddenly weary, having learned from his previous mistake. Instead of going towards Kara and Sarah he extended his hand towards Cat with the offered phone.
Cat took it from him, seeing the name Alex and the timer counting down on the screen as she passed it on to Kara.
Kara took the phone in her hand as Sarah snuggled into her side more comfortably and played with a few strands of Kara's long hair—hair that had slipped free from her ponytail. Sarah twirled the strands around her finger until it knotted, then she untangled them and began again. Her eyes focused on her fingers movements and making sure every inch of her skin on her index finger was covered, wrapped up, by her mother's hair.
"Alex…yes. I'm at CatCo. Yeah…I figured the storm had something to do with…well…with a young blonde that's currently playing with my hair."
"Aunt Alex?" Sarah asked, not even looking up from her game.
"Mmmhmm…" Kara hummed as response.
Sarah seemed pleased, though it was apparent she was less exicted then she could be. "Hi, Aunt Alex…is Aunt Lucy there too?"
"Uhm, Kara?" Kara smiled as she held the phone against her ear. "Who is that?"
"Well, that would be…"
"Sarah Alexandra Grant-Danvers." Cat supplied, trying, and failing, to hide a growing smile at the name.
Cat took the conversation and the lull in excitement to sit on the edge of the couch by Kara's feet. Once she was upon the couch Sarah shifted in Kara's arms and crawled over to Cat, who welcomed the young girl with open arms. She was stiff for a few moments as Sarah settled against her much like Carter had when he was younger. As strange as this all was, Cat was still a mother, she had the instincts of one, and she welcomed Sarah into her arms to help comfort her, even if Cat was just as anxious with this situation was Sarah was.
"Your name-sake niece." Kara's eyes twinkled as she listened to Alex gasp. "From an alternate Earth."
"Niece? Neice? Bilogically yours?"
"I'd say so, yes."
"How do you know?"
"Well she has my eyes and my father's chin and she can move…" Kara was about to say at the speed of light but stopped—as if she just realized that Cat still didn't 'officially' know. The secret was useless to hide. Cat knew. Kara knew Cat knew. They both just pretended like she didn't so Kara could keep pretending she was keeping them safe that way. "…faster than me."
"Jeeze…okay. Okay. I can handle this. I can. I can handle—who's the father!?" Alex cut off her calming mantra as if she just realized that for Kara to have a child—in normal human standards—there had to be a father or sperm donor of some sort.
Kara grinned wickedly as she stared at Cat. "Cat Grant."
Kara wondered what type of coronary Alex was having in the helicopter. Who was going to face Alex's wrath the second the phone was disconnected.
"WHATTTT!? Kara…you tell me this second if you're kidding. I can't, you can't, she can't. WHAT!?"
"I'll explain when you get here."
"Yeah, yeah…a-ahokay. Fine. We're ten minutes out."
"Look, you can't go flying. There are tears in the…well in the continuum. We're already tracking four possible hostiles. Five if you count…"
"She's not hostile!" Kara's voice lowered dangerously as her eyes narrowed.
"Right, well, she's the spawn of Cat Grant, she can—"
"Alex…" Kara warned her sister once, her tone promising a long held grudge if she continued.
"We have a way to track where the tears are but it's a prototype. We need Winn's help. We'll be there soon. Keep Sarah Alexandra there. It looks like the oth-the hostiles are making their way into the city. We have containment groups moving to intercept."
"We won't go anywhere." Kara whispered, her gaze landing upon the sight of Cat smoothing out Sarah's hair as the young girl snuggled into her chest, stuck her thumb into her mouth and closed her eyes. Her glasses currently in Cat's hand as she gently placed them on the arm of the couch. The warmth of Cat's body seeped into her shin as Cat leaned back into her perch.
"You'll have to explain this to me later."
"Same."
"Put Winn back on." Alex requested, her exasperation obvious in her tone.
Kara pulled the phone away from her ear, "Winn, she wants to talk to you."
Winn pointed to himself, even as he stepped forward, slowly, and took the phone from Kara. "Alex, yeah. Uhm…yeah. I should be. Oh, okay. Yea. I'll go grab it." Winn turned and left Cat's office to get his laptop. Alex's instructions continuous as he left.
"Can I get you ladies anything?" James asked from his vantage point across from the couch all three blondes currently inhabited. Figuring he could get an update from Alex or Winn after he got off the phone.
"Fuwwddd." Sarah muttered against her thumb.
"Thumb…" Cat reprimanded, and Sarah reluctantly extracted her thumb and opened her eyes as she looked to her Uncle James.
Sarah smiled up at James, dimples and all. "Something to eat, please."
"I have some snacks in my office. How about a protein bar?" Kara asked, slipping her legs out from behind Cat and Sarah as easily as it was to take off a pair of gloves.
Sarah's eyes widened and she nodded her head, making everyone think she wasn't often allowed to have protein bars.
"I'll get them. In the bottom drawer, right?" James offered as he made his way to the doors. Ready to give the three women some time alone.
Kara nodded her head in answer, and James smiled as he slipped out of the office. Passing by Natalie's desk, hearing the woman plead with someone on the phone to help her reschedule the meetings Cat had told her to push back. He didn't envy Natalie right now, but as he looked over his shoulder and back into Cat's office at the three blondes…he knew there was someone to envy, someone he never really expected.
Once James had left the room Kara twisted her head to the side and saw Sarah and Cat both looking at her. The scrutiny made her nervous. She stood quickly and rubbed her palms against her thighs, as if she were smoothing out her outfit.
"Sarah, how old are you exactly?"
Sarah tilted her head to the side, even as it rested against Cat's shoulder. "My birthday is May 14th, 2012."
"Four. Okay." Kara nodded her head, as if she were trying to piece together a puzzle half a piece by half a piece.
"Should we be asking these questions? Won't it like…cause a ripple or something that can't be fixed and affects the rest of the timeline or blends the universes too thin?" Cat questioned, her eyes scrunching up on the sides as she focused on all those Sci-Fi movies she'd watched; with and without Carter. The principal always seemed the same.
"I don't think we have to worry about the timeline. She would have already been born in this parallel Earth."
Cat nodded, realizing Kara's point. Sarah wasn't from the future or an alternate future or past, she was from an alternate present that wasn't directly related to this one. They weren't two streams running on top of each other, but beside each other.
Kara waited until Cat was more relaxed with her question probing before she continued. "And where do you live?"
"1423 Wentworth Drive." Sarah recited the information, just like she'd been taught. "My phone number is…" She parroted the number and the numbers of her parents. Shockingly, the phone numbers matched Kara's and Cat's, or maybe it wasn't as shockingly as they thought it would be.
When Kara was satisfied with the questions answered and asked Cat rubbed Sarah's arm to draw her attention so she could ask her own questions. "Sarah, you mentioned someone named Melanie before…"
"Yeah…" Sarah's eyes turned to slits and her lips pursed in an angry frown.
"Who is she?"
"She's evil and mean and I hate her." Sarah's eyes watered the more passionate she became with her obvious distaste for this 'Melanie'.
"Sarah," Cat ran her finger over Sarah's cheek slowly, "that didn't answer my question."
Sarah sighed heavily as she stared down at Mr. Frog. "She's…"
"Here's that protein bar." James announced as he came back into the room carrying three protein bars. "I wasn't sure what flavor…so I grabbed one of each."
Sarah's eyes were alight as she waited for James to come closer with the food. "One should be fine. We'll get something real to eat as soon as Alex gets here." Kara promised as she gave Sarah the vanilla protein bar.
"Can I have the strawberry?" Sarah asked, her eyes slightly downcast as if by asking for the strawberry she was doing something she felt like Kara wouldn't like.
"Of course!" Kara swapped the bars quickly and handed it to Sarah, smiling as she watched her open the bar. Vanilla was Cat's favorite. Strawberry was Kara's. Somehow, Kara thought Sarah would have taken after Cat.
The sound of an incoming helicopter echoed in Kara and Sarah's ears.
"Awnt Awex…here." Sarah said around a mouthful of the protein bar. Already finished with it as she licked her fingers.
Kara noticed how fast Sarah ate the protein bar and handed her the vanilla one next, not having taken into account how hungry the girl actually was.
Cat too noticed how fast Sarah ate the bar and having watched Kara eat, knew that Sarah must be running on empty. "Have another one." Cat insisted even as Kara handed her the other two protein bars.
"Thanks…" Sarah blushed, her stomach growling loudly as she ate another one of the bars.
"I'll have my assistant order…" Cat stood, horrified that Sarah was so hungry that she could hear her stomach gurgle like it had.
"Uhm….guys…" Winn came into the office quickly and ran to Cat's desk, and turned on the TV's. On each of them there were images of what could only be described as…beings…flying through visible tears in the sky. There were also army, navy, and DEO agents surrounding many of the beings. Almost all of the super-powered individuals were giving themselves in. But there were a select few that were wreaking havoc around National City and its neighboring tristate area.
"I think there are more than just five now." Winn said as he put down the remote and stared at the images crossing the screen.
"Winn, my phone." Winn tossed the phone towards Kara, his eyes never leaving the TVs. Kara called Alex, hearing the approaching helicopter, growing closer.
"Alex…there are a lot more than five."
"Yea, we're getting reports of them now. We're going to need Supergirl's help. We have an idea on how to close these things but we don't want to trap the…UARs here."
"You'll have it. Just get here. I want to make sure Sarah gets taken to headquarters so…"
The doors of Cat's balcony swung open with enough force to shatter the glass, the hinges barely clinging to the wall as the door flopped forward after impacting the wall. Kara, having heard it a second sooner than everyone else was already standing in front of Cat and Sarah—Cat having grabbed Sarah and covered the young blonde with her own body.
The shower of glass skittering across the hardwood floor after soaring through the air and bouncing off of Kara, stole the worry and attention of everyone in Cat's office.
"Sarah!"
Cat spun her head around from her position covering Sarah. She knew that voice.
Cat stood in one swift movement and looked around Kara, unsurprised that Kara would have taken up position in front of her and Sarah—the young woman still stiff and ready for battle.
"Kara? Kara what's going on!?"
"Uh…" Kara muttered, her eyes wide as she watched bare feet touch down on the glass covered floor. Water and rain spraying in now that the doors didn't protect the office from the gale force winds and globs of pouring rain.
Carter came bursting in through the open balcony doors. His feet just touching down upon the ground because five seconds ago he had been flying. As in hovering above the ground as if the laws of physics didn't apply to him.
Cat swallowed and took in several short breathes, recounting the Lamaze classes she'd had to take while pregnant to help get oxygen to her brain so she at least remained conscious. Her son was flying. He had been flying…except he knew Sarah. How could he know Sarah? What was happening. He was older. By several years. He looked like a young man more than boy. Like facial hair was about to start sprouting from his chin any second. How…how…
"I've got you." Kara assured as she caught Cat mid fall. She helped steady the shorter woman and allowed Cat to rest heavily against her as they stared at the older alter ego of Carter Grant.
"Carter!" Sarah raced to her brother and threw herself into his arms at full speed. Cater took the impact with little effort, only skidding a few inches backwards as he grabbed onto Sarah and held her close. Squeezing with all his might as he hid his face against her neck and she did the same his shirt soaking up Sarah's tears.
Any questions about where he came from were answered as Sarah rushed to him and the super-powered siblings embraced.
Outside on the balcony two black ropes curled around in a circular pool and within a few seconds Alex stood on the balcony with Lucy dropping down a few seconds after her.
Alex was the definition of 'entering with guns blazing'. Her heart was racing against her chest but her focus was clear. Her gun was drawn and she was rippling with dangerous, threatening energy. Her eyes were like lasers as she took in everything in front of her before moving quickly onto the next, searching out the threat, ready to eviscerate it if necessary.
There were two embracing persons in front of her.
Winn was in the corner with his hands raised in surrender.
Kara was holding Cat Grant from behind, they looked far too comfortable for her brain to register properly at this very moment. Later…later she would focus on this development.
James was behind them all, staring at her.
She looked between the four over and over again before she realized there was nothing else in the room, no threat. She slowly lowered her weapon as a head of blonde curly hair lifted and a face that looked like a mesh of Kara when she was younger and someone else stared at her.
"Aunt Alex!" Sarah exclaimed as she lifted her head up from Carter's shoulder and stared at her namesake. "Aunt Lucy! Hi!" She smiled brightly at the two women. "Everything's going to be okay now. Carter's here. He's going to take me home. Aren't you Carter?" Sarah asked, innocent eyes staring up at her big brother, complete faith in Carter's ability to take care of her and bring her home.
Carter though, looked less sure. He held Sarah in his arms, his sister's legs wrapping around his waist as she settled into him. "I'll have to talk to Aunt Alex and Aunt Lucy and Uncle Winn, but you bet I'll get us home."
"Not before you explain just what you were thinking!"
Alex blinked. That was Cat Grant's voice, but she was staring at Cat Grant—eyes lasering in on how Cat's fingers were draped gently over Kara's forearm. Kara was currently using her arm to keep Cat pressed snuggly against her, all to keep Cat from falling. That was it. No other ulterior motives!
"Racing after her into that storm. We told you to stay inside for a reason. You know these electric storms are dangerous. You could have been hurt! The both of you. For a toy!"
Cat continued to scold the two children as she flew in from behind Alex. It was only when the shorter woman was a few inches from dropping down onto the balcony that Alex turned around and saw her, her gun drawn once again. Eyes wide and head spinning.
"Motherfucker…" Alex couldn't help it. She jumped. Knocking backwards into Lucy, who scrambled to keep them both from falling. She was shocked, but not nearly as much as Alex seemed to be.
Cat Grant was landing on the balcony—which was quickly becoming crowded—with a supersuit on that was similar to Astra and Non's old catsuits, the sigil for the house of El embroidered on the chest.
Cat looked at Alex with pursed lips, unappreciative of Alex's profanity. "No, Agent Danvers. That would be Astra." The smirk upon Cat's face was wicked, and it took Alex a moment to understand the odd comment. Until things started to click into place and Alex's face morphed from confusion—to thought—to understanding—to horrified disgust.
"Lucy…" The super powered Cat greeted with a nod. "…always a pleasure to see you. Do make sure your missus learns not to curse in front of minors. Hmmm…"
Alex blushed crimson red all the way down to her toes as she jumped away from Lucy, horrified that Cat would insinuate that she and Lucy…that her mother and Astra…
Suddenly Alex was very, VERY, grateful that she existed in this parallel Earth. She wasn't sure she'd be able to handle the one that these three super-powered individuals seemed to come from.
"Cater, Sarah…Your mother is distraught." Although Cat sounded as if her wife's distress was over exaggerated, the shine in her eyes and physical relief at having her children within reach was obvious. "We best get back to her before she goes into premature labor."
"Labor?" Kara squeaked from inside the office. Catching both Cats' attentions. How many children did they have?!
The alternate Cat smiled fondly at the sight of herself and Kara leaning heavily against each other. She was happy to know that her alter found Kara in this Earth like she had in their universe. Cat couldn't imagine one without Kara and their ever growing family. Though, the age difference in this Parallel Earth was interesting. Cat wondered what had changed this Earth to divert Cat from meeting Kara when they were both children.
"Hmm…thank you for looking after these two. I hope they weren't too much trouble." Cat looked around and saw the broken glass and frowned, her eyes landing on Carter's. The young man had the decency to look sheepish and offer a quiet, 'sorry'.
"They were...fine." Cat thought she might still just faint from the sight before her. It was only Kara's warmth and the wrap of her arm that kept her steady, calm, and conscious. Even though her brain seemed to be misfiring over and over again as she tried to fathom their current situation.
"Mmhmm..." The alternate Cat hummed as she looked at her children pointedly.
"Thank these alters for taking care of you."
"Thank you for looking after me even though you're not really my mommies." Sarah recited with a soft smile, her cheek still resting against Carter's shoulder as she spoke. Her stuffed animal left forgotten upon the edge of a couch cushion.
"We'll discuss all of this when we get home. Come along now." The Alternate Cat pushed off the ground and hovered there waiting for Carter and Sarah to follow her example.
They did, both hovering on either side of her. They made a striking sight, especially as lightning flashed behind them and the rain continued to pelt down on Cat her suit waterproof, though her hair wasn't fairing as well as the suit.
Cat looked towards Alex and Lucy as the two agents made their way into Cat's office, out from the rain.
"You know how to return to your world?" Alex asked, curious as to how Cat knew which rift would lead her home.
Cat sighed, "Has your world not encountered these rifts before?"
"No." Kara answered, squeezing both of Cat's shoulders to warn the older woman that she was stepping away. Cat understood and forced her weight back fully onto her own legs. "We haven't." Kara picked up Sarah's stuffed animal and walked towards the balcony to hand it to the excited young girl.
Sarah rushed forward and took her favorite stuffed animal-who'd really started this to begin with (and Melanie too of course). Sarah smiled at Kara and blushed as she stuffed Mr. Frog into her the neckline of her shirt, his front legs catching so he hung below her neck over the collar of her shirt. Sarah moved back to hover beside her mother, her hand slipping into Cat's as she stared into the office at everyone.
"Is there anything you can tell us about them?" Alex asked, ready and willing to Osborn any information this Alternate had about these rifts and what caused them. The Alternate Cat rolled her eyes at the question, but it was done so fondly as a small smile graced her lips as she did so.
"You obviously can map them; how?" Kara asked, her head tilted to the side in curiosity.
Cat's nose crinkled in amusement as she chuckled. "So very similar to your alters from our world. Tell me, has this Earth encountered an electric surge from the sun?"
"No..." Alex tried to wrap her mind around an electric surge coming from the Sun!
"Well, our world has. It gave 30% of humans an additional charge..." Cat attempted to explain the concept to people who hasn't grown up with the new technology that was required to measure and map these charges and changes in the human genome.
"Like nuclear radiation from comic books," Carter offered. "X-Men type stuff."
They all looked incredibly confused by the reference.
"Meta-Humans?" Alex asked.
"Yes, like-"
"You guys seriously don't have X-men?!" Carter seemed horrified. "What about Spider-Man? Iron Man...Captain America!" He got more desperate the further down the list he went.
"Sorry, none of those here. And trust me. I'd know." Winn offered from where he stood.
"Carter, now really isn't the time to-"
"I know, I know. I'm sorry. It's just...no Avengers." Carter shook his head sadly, like he just realized how misfortunate this world was.
"As I was saying..." The Alternate Cat looked pointedly at Carter to make sure he wasn't going to say anything more, "The energy mutated our cells and gave us differing super-human abilities. But that electric solar flare, it hasn't dissipated in almost 50 years. The Earth rather is a conductor and every once and a while it will release the energy it stored from the ESF. They've gotten more powerful the last few years. We've developed electromagnetic pulse devices that store the energy and use it as a power source...but that caused a form of pollution in the air that caused electric storms that have the ability to tear through the continuum between worlds. We've been working on it but it seems several Alternate Earths faced the same ESF but have yet to find means to control the energy, which makes the lines between the dimensions very thin. We've been working with the other A-E's so the frequency of these rifts and storms will cease. Several of our scientists came through the rifts with devices that will help. They've already surrendered to your government."
"That's why there were so many giving themselves in." Lucy recounted aloud as she turned to stare at the TV screens, some of them showing replays of several super powered individuals surrendering. Lucy's eyes widened when she caught sight of a close up one of CatCo's first responder crew had captured.
It was Alex. Dressed in a similar catsuit that the Alternate Cat was wearing, except on her chest wasn't the House of El crest but the In-Ze sigil.
Lucy looked away from the screens quickly when Alex saw her attention remaining on them for 'too long'. By the time Alex looked her Alternate was gone.
"Is there anything we can do to help now that it's spilled into our dimension?" James asked, hoping with all the brain power in this room there was something they could do.
"The electromagnetic pulse devises your crew is working on will work." The Alternate Cat stated as she looked from James to Lucy and Alex. "Work on creating a network of the devices on the rooftops of the sky scrapers around the tristate area. It will help collect the energy and keep the realms from slipping against each other like this as often." Cat offered the advice with a serious countenance. "If you do not…" She shook her head in a dismal way that forewarned of what could be. A future none of them wanted to face. "Be smart. Do as I say. You won't regret it."
Cat waited for Carter to fly a little above her before she took hold of Sarah's hand.
"Wait, we have more questions!" Lucy spoke up, hoping she wasn't the only one that needed answers.
"Sorry, Director. You'll have to generate your own answers to those questions with the help of our science teams. I'm here for my children only."
"The time continuum and all that…" Carter joked, unaware that his alternate mothers had already had this discussion and knew the time continuum wasn't at risk.
"Bye!" Sarah waved happily. "It was nice meeting you!"
When the three super powered family members disappeared from sight everyone looked away from the broken balcony doors and tried to find something to say.
Nothing seemed right, none of them wanting to be the one to break the silence, yet all of them hoping someone would.
"Agent Danvers, Agent Lane. Report!" Hank barked through the speaker of Alex's radio.
Alex picked it up to answer, the silent trance they'd all fallen into broken.
They would have to truly think about everything they'd just gleamed from this chance encounter. But for right now, they had a city to salvage, unknown alien refugees to help get home, and rifts to close.
They had time. This storm would pass, just as all the others, and they'd all come out stronger than before.
Discussions of how, why, and what a little blonde's adventure into their world meant, especially for Cat and Kara and their relationship and future, was just going to have to wait.
THE END